Come To Think Of It...The Ugly, Sad Story Of Isiah Thomas

He was once king of the open court, a wizard on the basketball floor.

He has since been reduced to stories of bad coaching, lousy management, and accidental drug overdoses.

It is truly a shame, for none of this had to happen. Isiah Thomas, born in Chicago, became a well-known basketball player as a high school student at St. Joseph High School, and went on to star at Indiana University and for the NBA's Detroit Pistons.

Nicknamed "Zeke", Thomas led the "Bad Boys" to the NBA Championship in the 1988-1989 and 1989-1990 seasons.

He was the toast of the town as the point guard on Piston teams from 1981-1994, named to the All-Star team twelve times, and voted one of the 50 Greatest Players in NBA History.

In 2000, Thomas was elected to the Basketball Hall of Fame, in his initial year of eligibility.

After his playing career, he was an executive with the Toronto Raptors, a television commentator, an executive with the Continental Basketball Association, head coach of the Indiana Pacers, and an executive and head coach for the New York Knicks.

It was during the last stint with the Knicks that things began to fall apart for the relatively-diminutive former point guard.

His time with the Knicks was met with constant criticism by the New York fans and management. He was ultimately unsuccessful, and was finally fired early in 2008 after the Knicks tied a franchise record of 59 losses

On October 24, 2008, Thomas was taken to White Plains Hospital Center near his New York City area home after taking an overdose of Lunesta, a form of sleep medication.

According to Harrison, New York police, they were called to Thomas's house, where, finding him unconscious but breathing, they had him transported to the hospital. Police Chief David Hall stated that they "are calling this an accidental overdose of a prescription sleeping pill.” He was released form the hospital later that day.

Thomas actually blamed his 17-year old daughter for overdosing when he did, thereby damaging her reputation, not his, according to Harrison Police Chief David Hall. Referring to Thomas' 17-year-old daughter, Hall said, "And why they're throwing her under the bus is beyond my ability to understand."

Of course, this wasn't the first time controversy has occurred with Thomas. In 1985, he reportedly helped organize a "freeze out" of Michael Jordan from their offense at the All-Star game, by not passing him the ball, supposedly out of jealousy.

In the 1991 NBA Playoffs, with 7.9 seconds remaining in the fourth game, Thomas and eight of his teammates walked off the court, refusing to shake hands with the members of the victorious Chicago Bulls.

In October 2006, Thomas and Madison Square Garden were sued for sexual harassment by Anucha Browne Sanders over sexual advances and repeatedly telling her that he was in love with her.

But this latest story takes the cake. That he would blame his daughter for something he did just shows the character of the man. Or the lack thereof.

Here's hoping that it gets better, and not worse from this point forward. Come to think of it, it can't get much worse. Or can it?